Stolen by the Alien Barbarian Xyru Read online

  “Mare? Whittingham? From Zeta?” Allegra’s eyes grew wide.

  I nodded slowly and met with Gandrox’s piercing stare. “What the ergs did you do, Xyru?”

  “I could not help myself, Captain. You said that when you met Allegra you just knew that she was your fated mate,” I replied.

  Allegra’s hand quickly covered her mouth. “Did you kidnap her?”

  “It wasn’t...well, maybe I lured her onto the ship. We didn’t have time. We were taking off and I know that she’s the one. I told her that you wanted to speak to her, so she followed me.”

  Gandrox chuckled. “So, this time instead of stowaways, we have a hostage?”

  “It wasn’t like that. I mean, she was coming around, finally,” I told him.

  “But you did a bad thing, Xyru. You can’t do that. You’re no better than the nasty Kwobus who tried to auction me off,” Allegra scolded.

  “That is a very harsh statement, Allegra,” Gandrox replied.

  “It’s true! Poor Mare must have been scared out of her wits.”

  “Now, Aarans aren’t as nasty as Kwobus and you know that. I’m sure Xyru meant no harm by it,” Gandrox answered in my defense.

  “I didn’t. I would never claim her without her consent,” I promised.

  Allegra smacked her hand to her face. “Oh, Xyru, you have a lot to learn about human behavior and what’s acceptable.”

  “I know. But she’s missing. This is Av’Na. We’ve got to find her.” I spoke quickly and held my breath, waiting on Gandrox’s response.

  “Sorry, Xyru, We’ve got to get back to Thronde. You’re on your own. I’m leaving you here with the Torq One. When you find Mare—”

  “When you get her permission to come back with you,” Allegra interrupted.

  “When you find her, bring her back. We’ll rendezvous. Until then, it’s up to you, my friend.” Gandrox smiled at me while Allegra shook her head.

  “Oh, Xyru, I wish you had come to me first. I could have talked her into coming with us instead of you stealing her away. I convinced Diamond to come with us and you can see how well that turned out for Elgan,” Allegra told me.

  I held out my hands. “Okay, I messed up. I know that now. I was so afraid that you’d say no, and that she’d say no. I thought that if I forced her to spend time with me, she’d see that we’re fated mates.”

  Allegra shook her head and smiled. “It took some time for me to realize that with Gandy here. Rule number one, never force yourself on a human. Rule number two, go find her!”

  After helping Gandrox offload the Torq One, the Torq Runner took flight, leaving me on Av’Na to find a Terran who wanted to hide from me. The rough-shod streets would prove no good if I didn’t refine my search, so I pulled up a map of the insignificant planet and tried to imagine where I’d run if I were a Terran trying to escape from me.

  I had a translation implant for Av’Na but I knew the Terrans did not. Mare had mentioned learning the native tongue on Zeta, but she didn’t have an implant with her. The languages spoken here were hard for me to understand, so I could only imagine how she must have felt. I took to the streets, trying to think like a Terran female as I made my way through them. The first shops along the way held barzers, and the Egars sat upon the stools, drinking their carafes full of bondage ale. Loose tongues flowed, and I knew better than to mention that I was looking for a Terran, knowing that Terrans drew a hefty price on the slave market. My skin crawled as the Egars, with little regard to me, talked about the females walking the streets of Av’Na and what they’d like to do with the likes of them.

  Chapter 3

  MARE

  I ran as fast and as far as I could once I scurried out of the ship. Xyru’s predicament became my escape. It didn’t matter if I saw Allegra or not; I would not chance that blue barbarian capturing me again. Fated mate. Huh. Whatever. I’m not his fated mate. Now, where in the hell did he say we’d landed? Av’Na.

  I removed the translator implant once I had learned Zeta’s native language. The absence of it made it impossible to understand anyone on Av’Na. Beings of all shapes and sizes hustled along the way streets. More looked like the workers at the hangar, which I assumed were the natives to this place. I needed an implant so that I could survive on the planet.

  The dusty road helped me blend in while I walked for a while, wanting to put distance between that ship of brutes and me. The dirt streets turned and twisted, the strange alien symbols I was certain gave their names, but I had no clue what they said. A shop window had a painting of an alien ear with an implant. Yes! The place smelled musty as I walked in, but I didn’t care.

  The three-eyed alien female stared at me, two eyes blinking together and the third one separately. I’m sure I looked as odd to her as she did to me. Large hoops hung from her ears and she had rings on each of her four fingers. I smiled, hoping it was universal for hello.

  “Do you speak Terran?” I asked.

  She shook her head, her eyes narrowing at me, and gurgled words I couldn’t understand.

  I pointed to my ear and my mouth. I held my hands in front of me in begging fashion. I had no way of communicating with her; I had no currency. I’d give her the clothes off my back for the implant if necessary. Being the only naked Terran wouldn’t cause too much concern on the planet. Many aliens wore nothing, their bodies covered in scales or thick fur. I shrugged as I smiled.

  She nodded and produced a box which held the little device I recognized. The implant would be of great help to me.

  After uttering some words, she held out her hand, and I followed her. A small, very fuzzy being looked up at me with the brightest light blue eyes. Striking eyes that, dare I say it, reminded me of Xyru. At least the Aaran had been easy on the eyes, though that blue skin would have taken some getting used to. I shook my head and smiled. Where in the world did those thoughts come from?

  The little creature held out his giant hands, which made him look like a caricature, out of proportion with the rest of his body. I settled on the seat, lying back so that he could reach me. He turned my head, and I squeezed my eyes shut when I saw the scalpel come out. The sharp instrument cut behind my ear and I jerked, but stopped myself from moving away. I needed the implant. Breathe. Each breath came in jagged as I counted. One. Inhale. Exhale. Two. Inhale. Exhale. I reached fifty before he had finished. He’d even sewed it up and put a small pasty thing over the cut. I sat up and the room spun. What I’d eaten earlier on the ship churned inside my belly. My eyes widened as I spied a waste pail at his feet. The bloodied pads and stitching string sat on top. I pointed madly at it and he quickly scooted it to me. I hurled just as I grabbed it, thus saving further embarrassment of vomiting on his feet and the floor. He grimaced and backed away and returned with a cloth. Once I emptied my gut, I cleaned my mouth and smiled as I uttered thank you. He tapped his implant and smiled.

  “Yes. Very well. Are you good then?” he asked.

  “I have no currency,” I told him.

  The female shoved a broom my way and pointed to the back of the clinic. At least I could sweep for the cost of the device. The place was much larger than I thought, but eventually I got it clean.

  “You are good now,” she said as she stood in the doorway. I had swept the floors for more than two hours.

  The streets bustled with beings, no one paying any attention to me, thankfully. I had heard of the awful places that captured females and auctioned them as sex slaves. The long shadows hid me as I stumbled along while the giant orange globe in the sky sank lower and lower over the horizon. A shiver rushed through my body as I hunkered into an alcove for rest. At least, Xyru hadn’t caught up with me and the more time slipped by, the more hope I had of being free from his grasp. Sleep came with fitful dreams of aliens stabbing me in the neck. A rustle on the street startled me hours later and I groggily opened my eyes. Stiff and sore from lying on the ground, I sat up and looked at a big-eyed creature scurrying off. It appeared to be a rat on steroids, compared to
the little suckers that lived among the population on Zeta. I stood and my head throbbed, the pain behind my ear causing me to lurch and vomit, splattering across the dirt. I couldn’t touch the spot with the implant, it hurt so bad. An infection raged within my head from it, and I needed some kind of medical attention.

  The place where I’d received the implant had no one around at this hour. The door was locked tightly. The longer I walked along the street, the more my head pounded. Sweat dripped from my face from the fever raging throughout my body. Excruciating pain reverberated through me as I tapped the implant, hoping to understand someone enough to ask for help. Two beady-eyed, very tall aliens peered down at me as I stumbled along and looked up.

  “Poor thing, looks like Koronde had hold of her,” the feminine one said to the masculine one.

  “Please, help me. This implant has made me sick. Where can I find a doctor? A medic?” I asked, hoping they’d understand.

  The male nodded. “There, across and count four down,” he said. I barely understood.

  A smile stretched across my face, and I hoped that it showed my appreciation, but I grimaced from the pain. The female took hold of my arm and led me across the street. My eyes swam in sweat as we came to the door of what looked like a hospital ward. Inside, the female Egar looked up at me as she led me to a room. I sat on a cushioned chair and she soon came back after leaving for a moment. I tapped the implant and grimaced. “Can you understand me?” I asked.

  “Indeed. The doctor said we will treat you if you agree to be our servant until you meet your currency due,” she told me.

  I nodded. Anything to help me at this point. I rather doubted that they wanted me for sexual favors. “Yes, I agree,” I replied.

  She pushed a chart toward me, and shoved my finger over the sharp on the corner, and a drop of blood appeared on my finger. I signed with my bloody finger print in the box and immediately she sealed it with a piece of clear tape. Maybe I had signed away all my rights, but she said until I met the currency due, which to me meant when I paid the bill I would gain back my freedom. A minor price to pay for overcoming the sickness caused by the implant.

  The room resembled the old war hospital rooms in the history books on Earth. How could such a place exist here where spaceships would land nearby? Still, I had no choice but to allow the Egar doctor to work on me. His sharp eyes took in my form when he entered the room.

  “Can you help me?” I croaked.

  He nodded and offered what I took for a smile as he scrawled something on the chart in his hands. The exam didn’t take long as he shone a light in my eyes, listened to my heart, and scratched his head.

  “What are you, exactly?” he asked.

  The question did little to instill any confidence. Do I tell him the truth or do I lie? Figuring he needed to know in order to treat me, I chose the truth. “I’m Terran,” I replied.

  His eyes widened as he peered across the room at the female Egar, named Xtara. She nodded only slightly at him and disappeared while he pulled up a stool and peered at me.

  “Can you help me? I got sick when I had this implant put in,” I said.

  “Yes, yes, we can help. You agree to become our servant to pay for the services?” he asked.

  I nodded, painfully. “Yes.”

  “Why are you here, so far from the Terran Solar System?” It was a legitimate question.

  After a muddled explanation about what happened to me, he took me to a room deep within the facility. I noticed the doors were closed and that there were a few muffled screams along the way, but he didn’t seem too distracted by it. Once in the room, the small bed barely had enough room for me to lie back and turn my head.

  “Bad implant. We’ll provide a better one. How do you say it? Sanitary. The shop you visited aren’t medical professionals. They do things for currency only.”

  “I didn’t pay them, except to sweep their floors afterward,” I told him.

  “Yes, yes. Servant.”

  “What are you doing?” I asked as he strapped my wrists to the bed.

  “To keep you still during the procedure,” he replied.

  “I’ll be still,” I said as I wiggled. It was too late; one of my hands was strapped to the bed. The female came in and grabbed my other hand. I fought, wriggling and trying to get out of their grip, but the two were stronger than me, and I lost the battle. Maybe it was for the best.

  The procedure didn’t last long, thankfully. I struggled in the bed while still bound after they finished with the other side having a fresh new implant.

  “Unlock me, please,” I pleaded.

  He shook his head. “We can’t,” he answered.

  I strained and yanked, trying to free myself, screaming at the two who just grinned as they backed out of the room. She came back soon after and shoved a needle into my arm. I lost consciousness.

  After I awoke later, I swung my legs over the edge of the bed. Stumbling to the door, I found that it was locked. No! Why would they lock me inside the room? I agreed to work off the service, but why had they locked the door? Fear gripped me as I realized they were up to no good. I’m not even sure what they actually implanted behind my left ear, and I only hoped that it was just a language implant and not some sort of tracking device. Now I wished I hadn’t left the Torq Runner, or Xyru.

  Chapter 4

  XYRU

  A growl escaped my throat as I sat at the counter and peered at the Egar serving drinks. Av’Na held nothing but scum. My fists flexed at the thought of Mare alone on the streets. She needed me now more than ever. I could feel it deep inside my heart. I vowed that if I found her I would return her to Zeta if she wished. I only hoped that I could save her from the greedy hands of those looking for anything to enslave on this forsaken planet.

  Lifting my wrist to the attendant, he flinched as I flicked on the button. A fully lit the likeness of Mare above my hand. “You’ve seen her?” I asked.

  The attendant shook his head. “No such likeness here. Terran?” he enquired.

  He was too smart for his own good. I pounded my fist as the image disappeared. “If any harm comes to her, my wrath will follow,” I threatened. The words fell on nearby ears, as I wanted them to know I meant business. After gulping the last of the strong liquid, I spun a currency coin toward the attendant. It rolled until stopping and I then took myself out of the premises. The streets of Av’Na held little hope of finding Mare easily. Dangerous beings roamed the place, looking for any opportunity to enrich themselves. My skin crawled with contempt as I passed many beady-eyed creatures, many of them barely deserving of life. My heart told me to keep up hope. I knew Mare was near, but where? I had to find my true mate before harm befell her.

  The scum cowered as I approached. Squaring my shoulders, I grinned nastily and harrumphed. Being a barbarian meant that most beings were frightened of me. I towered above them, my muscular body having twice the girth as their puny forms. It gave me the advantage as I spoke to them. I did not worry about being captured and tortured as many smaller beings undoubtedly had been before on this planet. But Mare. My heart sank at the thought of what she might go through. I had to find her, and quickly.

  Every place I entered I thrusted my wrist forward, showing Mare’s likeness. Beings shook their heads, scurrying away from my towering presence. Good. Let them shake in fear. I’ll bring my wrath on anyone who so much as harms a hair on her head.

  A growl escaped again, the Egars running from my questions. Fear grew inside them early on to leave the likes of me alone. Whenever we’ve landed on Av’Na, the Egars at the hangar would promptly do their jobs of loading and unloading and would scurry away as soon as they had finished. Having me roaming their streets caused a wave of wariness that put a smile on my face. I relished putting fear into them. However, Mare also created a desire deep within me to be less cruel that I might have been otherwise. Where was she?

  The tenth creature I visited, a Hardroid, peered at Mare’s likeness. “I haven’t seen the Terran. Bu
t there’s a medical research facility not too far from here. Check there. They enjoy capturing beings other than Egars, to you know, research,” he said. His enormous eyes grew even larger when he spoke. Chills raced down my spine.

  “I’ve not heard of this facility,” I replied.

  “Secret, they are. If others knew, they’d be on the lookout. They use the element of surprise to capture unwilling victims,” he told me quietly.

  “I know,” croaked the fat Bailess from the corner. I turned to see him peering through the ringed smoke, which helped to keep him alive outside of the waters of Baileo. The giant creature nodded at me while I approached his table.

  “Speak,” I barked at him.

  His beady eyes regarded me for a moment. Even he cowered in my presence. It would only take a swift knock with my fist to pummel his lifeline of mist. “The Baer’th. Down through the wood.”

  “The medical research facility?” I asked.

  “Aye, that’s the same. I hear tales of an exotic there. The female wandered into their facility begging for help. Delight, they are. Plans to carry out tests on her, hoping to reproduce her for auctions,” he answered.

  “Who? Who runs it?”

  The Hardroid stepped toward the table. “A Thorinkha who goes by the name Skleen. Mad, crazy. He’ll stop at nothing to gain any knowledge to increase his currency.”

  The words rang in my ears as I rushed from the place before he could finish speaking. They had Mare. The Wood surrounded the community, filled with creatures of dark means, those that would just as soon eat you if you held little other value. I didn’t care about the danger to myself. My lightly armored hovercraft could carry me through the twisted paths. My jaw flexed as I zoomed through the gnarled wood, dodging the creatures I found along the way, knocking a few to the side. The only thing that mattered was Mare. Her lovely face filled my mind as my heart pounded. Save her or die trying. That became my goal if I could only find the facility. The paths eventually crossed off, heading in different directions. My instinct normally led me correctly, so I followed one path as I steered the hovercraft.